Preparation time: 5 min
Cooking time: 10 min
Serves: 4

Ingredients: (measuring cup used = 240ml)

1. 2 medium sized tomatoes
2. 1 small gooseberry sized tamarind
3. 1 - 2 tsp jaggery (as per your taste but don't miss it)
4. 2 tsp salt (as per your taste)
5. 1 green chili
6. 2 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
7. A big pinch of turmeric powder

Ingredients for grinding:

1. 2 - 4 red chili
2. 2 tsp coriander seeds
3. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
4. A pinch of asafoetida
5. 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
6. 1/4 cup grated coconut
7. 1 tsp cooking oil

Ingredients for tempering:

1. 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
2. 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3. A pinch of asafoetida
4. 5 - 6 curry leaves
5. 2 tsp ghee / cooking oil

Instructions for making easy tomato rasam or simple tomato saaru:

1. Chop tomatoes and grind it into a fine paste.
2. Transfer it to a container. Add in slit green chili, salt and turmeric powder. Bring it to boil. Then allow it to cook under low flame.
3. Meanwhile heat a frying pan and fry red chilies, coriander seeds, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds using 1 tsp of oil.
4. Gring roasted ingredients along with grated coconut until smooth paste.
5. Add the ground paste into the boiling tomato puree or paste.
6. Add in required water, salt, jaggery and tamarind extract.
7. Bring it to rolling boil and add in finely chopped corinader leaves and switch off the stove.
8. In a small skillet prepare tempering using 2 tsp of ghee, 1/2 tsp mustard, 1/2 tsp cumin seeds and curry leaves. Add this tempering to the rasam or saaru.

Dear reader, We have a Kannada version of this recipe. Click here to read this recipe in Kannada.